Miscellaneous/Consultation/Review

A 30-minute structured aesthetic consultation with a qualified clinician — fee redeemable against treatment.

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Miscellaneous/Consultation/Review

Duration

45 min

From

£50

Redeemable against treatment

Treatment Summary

A focused 30-minute appointment with one of our qualified clinicians at Aesthetic Clinique in West Hampstead. We listen to what is bothering you, examine your face systematically, review your medical history, and explain — honestly — which interventions are likely to help, which are not, and what a sensible plan and budget look like. The fee is redeemable against any treatment booked. We do not, by default, treat on the day of consultation: a cooling-off period gives you time to consider written information without pressure.

Also known as: aesthetic consultation · skin consultation · Botox consultation · filler consultation · cosmetic consultation

Key Benefits

Considered, Unhurried Assessment

Thirty minutes is enough time to actually examine your face and discuss options properly — not enough to be sold something.

Honest Recommendation

We will tell you when treatment is not in your interest. Sometimes the right answer is to do nothing, or to do less than you arrived asking for.

Written Information Provided

You leave with a written plan, expected outcomes, costs, downtime and known risks — to read at home, not under pressure.

Cooling-Off Period

We do not treat on the day by default. A short interval lets you decide without the room or the deposit influencing the choice.

What a consultation at Aesthetic Clinique is

A consultation is a structured 30-minute appointment with a qualified clinician at Aesthetic Clinique in West Hampstead. Its purpose is to give you the information you need to make a good decision — not to sell you a treatment. We listen, we examine systematically, we explain options honestly, and we provide written information you can take home and consider without pressure.

This is the appointment where we say things like: "your forehead does not need treatment", "what you want is technically possible but I do not think it would suit your face", or "this is well outside what I would safely treat — here is who I would refer you to instead". A consultation is information; a treatment is a separate decision.

How the appointment is structured

Every consultation follows roughly the same shape, because that is the only way to be thorough in 30 minutes:

  • We begin with your concerns in your own words — what brought you in, what bothers you in photographs, what you do not want.
  • We take a medical and aesthetic history: past treatments (with dates and products if known), medical conditions, medications, allergies, pregnancy plans.
  • We perform a systematic facial examination — at rest and in animation — looking at proportion, symmetry, skin quality, volume, dynamic versus static lines.
  • We discuss options: what is recommended, what is recommended against, what realistic outcomes look like, what the costs and downtime are, what the known risks are.
  • You leave with written information to read at home. Booking treatment is a separate step.

Why we do not treat on the day by default

Two reasons. The first is professional: UK guidance on prescription-only cosmetic medicines recommends a cooling-off period between consultation and treatment so the decision is made calmly, with written information, away from the room. The second is practical: clients who book treatment a few days after consultation, after reading their written information, are consistently happier with the outcome than those who decide in the chair.

Returning patients on maintenance treatment are a different case; for established care, a brief review at the treatment appointment is usually sufficient.

What happens to the fee

The consultation fee of £50 is redeemable against any treatment booked subsequently. If you proceed, it is effectively free. If you decide not to proceed, you have paid for thirty minutes of considered, qualified clinical opinion — which we think is reasonable.

What good outcomes look like

A good consultation does not always end in a treatment booking. Sometimes the right outcome is a written plan to begin in six months. Sometimes it is a recommendation to focus on skincare and revisit injectables in a few years. Sometimes it is to address something somewhere else — a dermatologist, an oral surgeon, a dentist. Sometimes it is to do nothing at all. Any of these is a legitimate outcome.

What to Expect

  1. 1

    Concerns and goals

    We start with what brought you in — in your words. Specific lines that bother you, photographs you have brought, areas you avoid in the mirror. We then ask what you do not want — frozen, overdone, obviously treated.

  2. 2

    Medical and aesthetic history

    Past treatments (with dates, products if known and clinics where possible), medical conditions, medications, allergies, pregnancy plans. Honesty here matters; gaps in the history are the commonest cause of unexpected outcomes.

  3. 3

    Systematic facial examination

    Face at rest and in animation, skin quality, volume, proportions, asymmetry, dynamic versus static lines. Photographs may be taken with your consent for the records.

  4. 4

    Plan, written information and next steps

    We discuss recommended options (and what we recommend against), with realistic outcomes, expected costs, downtime and known risks. You leave with written documentation. Booking treatment is a separate step, not an in-room decision.

Suitability

Aesthetic care is highly individual. The points below are general guidance — final suitability for miscellaneous/consultation/review is always confirmed in your consultation.

Often suitable for

  • Anyone considering an aesthetic treatment for the first time
  • Patients researching options before committing — including those who may decide not to proceed
  • Patients unhappy with a previous treatment elsewhere who want a second opinion
  • Patients who want a structured plan rather than a single quick fix
  • Patients who prefer to be told honestly when treatment is not in their interest

May not be suitable if

  • Patients seeking a 'free consultation' as a sales meeting — that is not what this is
  • Patients wanting same-day treatment without prior assessment — we do not work that way by default
  • Patients seeking treatments we do not provide, where a referral elsewhere is more appropriate

Aftercare

Caring for your results

A few simple steps in the first 24–48 hours help your results settle as expected.

  • Read the written information at home, without pressure
  • Take time to consider the plan before booking — there is no expiry on the cooling-off period
  • Email any follow-up questions; we are happy to clarify
  • If you decide to proceed, the consultation fee is redeemed against your first treatment
  • If you decide not to proceed, that is a perfectly reasonable outcome

Evidence & Standards

A structured pre-treatment consultation with a qualified clinician is the foundation of safe, regulated aesthetic practice in the UK and is reflected in the safety guidance issued by the Joint Council for Cosmetic Practitioners (JCCP) and other recognised aesthetic registers. The model used at Aesthetic Clinique reflects current UK guidance: written information, a cooling-off period and informed consent before any prescription-only medicine is administered.

Frequently Asked Questions

Why do you charge for a consultation?
Two reasons. First, a thirty-minute appointment with a qualified clinician has a real cost — making it free typically means making it short, or treating it as a sales meeting. Neither is in your interest. Second, the fee is redeemed against any treatment you book, so if you proceed it is essentially free; if you do not proceed, we have spent thirty minutes giving you considered information rather than a sales pitch.

Can I have treatment on the same day?
By default, no. We do not treat at the consultation appointment. UK guidance recommends a cooling-off period for prescription-only cosmetic treatments, and we agree with that principle — it gives you time to consider written information without the pressure of being in the chair. Same-day treatment is occasionally possible for returning patients on maintenance, at clinical discretion.

What should I bring?
If you have had previous treatments, bring whatever records or photographs you can — the products used, the dates, the clinic. If you are taking medications or have medical conditions, bring a current list. If a particular concern brought you in, photographs from a few years ago can be helpful to show how it has changed.

Will you tell me I need treatment?
Only if we genuinely think you do. We are equally comfortable telling you that you do not need treatment, that you should consider doing less than you came in asking for, or that your concern is best addressed somewhere else (a dermatologist, an oral surgeon, a different clinic). We do not work on commission and we have no incentive to recommend more than is appropriate.

Is the consultation confidential?
Yes. All clinical records are confidential and held in line with UK data-protection law. We do not share information with third parties without your written consent.

Do I need a consultation if I have had Botox / filler before?
If your previous treatment was elsewhere, yes — we want to understand what was used, when, and your response, before recommending anything. If your previous treatment was with us and you are returning for maintenance within a typical interval, a structured consultation may not be needed and a brief review at the treatment appointment is usually appropriate.

What if I decide not to proceed?
Then you have used your appointment well. The consultation is information; the decision is yours. Many of our consultations end with a recommendation to wait, to do less, or to address the concern with skincare or lifestyle rather than a procedure. That is a normal and good outcome.

Ready to take the next step?

Book a private consultation with our team to discuss miscellaneous/consultation/review in West Hampstead and decide together whether it is the right treatment for you.

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